WASHINGTON – U.S. Congresswoman Candice Miller (MI-10) today made the following comments on the $26 billion Education Jobs and Medicaid Assistance Act:

“This is simply another example of the out-of-control spending by in Washington which continues to show little regard for what should be our top priority, private sector job creation. This bill spends an additional $26.1 billion, including $10 billion going to state education budgets and $16 billion going to fund state Medicaid programs.

“We all support making certain that our children get a good education and no one wants to see teacher layoffs. But in Michigan, the state legislature has already passed a budget for the next fiscal year that includes an increase in per-pupil funding over last year when the school aid fund actually ran a surplus. The massive teacher layoffs the Democrats warn us about are not pending in Michigan. This new spending addresses a problem which does not exist in Michigan.

“The Medicaid funding included in this bill could have had broad bi-partisan agreement if it had not been coupled with other questionable spending and new taxes on American job creators. It is indeed unfortunate that Democrats never miss an opportunity to couple unnecessary spending and destructive new taxes with other needed funding.

“Perhaps worst of all is that this temporary spending is partially financed with a permanent new tax on American job providers. This bill imposes a tax on American companies’ profits from foreign markets when they attempt to bring that money back into our nation which will make American companies less competitive in the global marketplace. What this new tax will do is penalize a company like General Motors on profits made overseas if they try and bring that money back home to fund new research and development or create new jobs here in America. If a company like Toyota is similarly profitable in a foreign market and takes that money back to Japan to fund research and development or create new jobs in that country, they will not face this tax.

“This anti-competitive and anti-jobs tax is simply wrong and will be an impediment in the effort to grow our economy. That is why it is so vigorously opposed by groups like the National Association of Manufacturers whose members are struggling in this difficult economy.

“American taxpayers are demanding that the big spending bailout culture in Washington must end, whether it is for private companies or state governments. But the big spending Democrats in Washington simply are not getting the message. Instead of calling the Congress back to Washington to tax and spend more, I suggest that Speaker Pelosi send her members back home to hear from hard pressed constituents who are demanding we change direction.”